1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an agent supplying device that supplies agents, such as toner, a mixture of toner and carrier, and carrier alone, to a certain location from a container that contains the agents. The present invention also relates to an image formation device, for example, an electrographic printer, facsimile or copier.
2) Description of the Related Art
A hard bottle type container is generally employed in the art as a container for use in an electrographic image formation device to contain dried agents, such as toner, carrier, and a mixture of toner and carrier (hereinafter referred to as xe2x80x9ctonerxe2x80x9d generically). Such container may include an agitator inside serving as a unit that agitates and discharges toner. Alternatively, it may have a helical groove formed on the container wall for rotating the container to move and discharge internal toner. Another container includes no discharge mechanism and thus is required to supply toner manually.
Recently, as environmental issues are increasingly valued, it is required to recover and recycle the toner containers. The hard bottle toner container has many problems associated with its recovery and recycle possibility, however, because it elevates a transportation cost and is hard to clean for reuse.
In view of the recovery and recycle possibility, a soft type toner container composed of a flexible material and having a reductive volume may often be employed. The dried toner for electrography generally has a poor fluidity and a property to be aggregated easily. Therefore, the use of the soft toner container to contain the dried toner for electrography makes it very difficult to discharge the toner from the soft container. Because the container is soft and an agitator or a discharge mechanism is hardly attached thereto, even if such the discharge mechanism can be attached, it prevents the container from reducing its volume.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-47465 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.2000-98721 disclose technologies that can greatly relieve the problems associated with such the conventional image formation device. The toner supplement devices disclosed in these publications are configured to absorbingly discharge toner contained in a flexible container therefrom using an absorbing pressure (negative pressure) caused from an absorbing powder pump (single-axial eccentric screw pump). Therefore, the toner contained even in the flexible container can be supplied to a development device without any trouble. In addition, the container is flexible and accordingly it can be easily recovered with a low transportation cost.
In the toner supplement devices, air is supplied into the toner container to sufficiently agitate the toner contained therein to sustain the toner quality in a good condition advantageously.
In the toner supplement devices disclosed in the publications, if the air is supplied excessively, the air supplied in the toner container flows into an air conveyance tube and pushes the toner within the tube. If such phenomena frequently occur, the toner in the tube may be compacted to cause the so-called xe2x80x9ccloggedxe2x80x9d toner that can not be conveyed through the powder pump. This problem can be easily caused in a single conduit type nozzle, in which a nozzle inserted into the toner container is communicated with an air path and a toner path, because the supplied air directly flows into the tube and pushes the toner therein.
The image formation device according to one aspect of the present invention is provided with an agent container that contains powdery agents; an absorber that conveys the agents contained in the agent container to a substantially-closed, certain location using negative pressure; an agent conveyance conduit that forms an agent conveyance path between the agent container and the absorber; an air supplier that supplies air into the agent container; and an open/close unit that opens and closes the agent conveyance conduit.
The image formation device according to another aspect of the present invention is provided with an agent container that contains powdery agents; an absorber that conveys the agents contained in the agent container to a substantially-closed, certain location using negative pressure; an agent conveyance conduit that forms an agent conveyance path between the agent container and the absorber; an air supplier that supplies air into the agent container; and a positive pressure generator that generates positive pressure in the agent conveyance conduit when the air supplier supplies the air.
The image formation device according to still another aspect of the present invention is provided with an agent container that contains toner; an absorber that conveys the toner contained in the agent container to a certain location using negative pressure; a substantially-closed, agent conveyance path between the agent container and the absorber; an air supplier that supplies air into the agent container; and a controller that controls operations of the air supplier and the absorber, the controller actuating the air supplier when it is determined that a toner supplement amount by the absorber reaches a certain amount. The certain amount M is equal to or greater than 0.5 g.
The image formation device according to still another aspect of the present invention is provided with an agent container that contains toner; an absorber that conveys the toner contained in the agent container to a certain location using negative pressure; a substantially-closed, agent conveyance path between the agent container and the absorber; an air supplier that supplies air into the agent container; and a controller that controls operations of the air supplier and the absorber, the controller actuating the air supplier when it is determined that a toner supplement amount by the absorber reaches a certain amount. The certain amount is equal to a value based on the toner contained in the agent container.
The image formation device according to still another aspect of the present invention is provided with an agent container that contains toner; an absorber that conveys the toner contained in the agent container to a certain location using negative pressure; a substantially-closed, agent conveyance path between the agent container and the absorber; an air supplier that supplies air into the agent container; and a controller that controls operations of the air supplier and the absorber, the controller actuating the air supplier when it is determined that a toner supplement amount by the absorber reaches a certain amount. If the certain amount is denoted with M, the controller varies the certain amount M based on the amount contained in the agent container.
The agent supplying device according to still another aspect of the present invention is provided with an agent container that contains powdery agents; an absorber that conveys the agents contained in the agent container to a substantially-closed, certain location using negative pressure; an agent conveyance conduit that forms an agent conveyance path between the agent container and the absorber; an air supplier that supplies air into the agent container; and an open/close unit that opens and closes the agent conveyance conduit.
The agent supplying device according to still another aspect of the present invention is provided with an agent container that contains powdery agents; an absorber that conveys the agents contained in the agent container to a substantially-closed, certain location using negative pressure; an agent conveyance conduit that forms an agent conveyance path between the agent container and the absorber; an air supplier that supplies air into the agent container; and a positive pressure generator that generates positive pressure in the agent conveyance conduit when the air supplier supplies the air.
The agent supplying device according to still another aspect of the present invention is provided with an agent container that contains powdery agents; an absorber that conveys the agents contained in the agent container to a certain location using negative pressure; a substantially-closed, agent conveyance path between the agent container and the absorber; an air supplier that supplies air into the agent container; and a controller that controls operations of the air supplier and the absorber, the controller actuating the air supplier when it is determined that an agent supplement amount by the absorber reaches a certain amount. The certain amount M is equal to or greater than 0.5 g.
The agent supplying device according to still another aspect of the present invention is provided with an agent container that contains powdery agents; an absorber that conveys the agents contained in the agent container to a certain location using negative pressure; a substantially-closed, agent conveyance path between the agent container and the absorber; an air supplier that supplies air into the agent container; and a controller that controls operations of the air supplier and the absorber, the controller actuating the air supplier when it is determined that an agent supplement amount by the absorber reaches a certain amount. If the certain amount is equal to a value based on the amount contained in the agent container.
The agent supplying device according to still another aspect of the present invention is provided with an agent container that contains powdery agents; an absorber that conveys the agents contained in the agent container to a certain location using negative pressure; a substantially-closed, agent conveyance path between the agent container and the absorber; an air supplier that supplies air into the agent container; and a controller that controls operations of the air supplier and the absorber, the controller actuating the air supplier when it is determined that an agent supplement amount by the absorber reaches a certain amount. If the certain amount is denoted with M, the controller varies the certain amount M based on the amount contained in the agent container.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention are specifically set forth in or will become apparent from the following detailed descriptions of the invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.